KUALA LUMPUR, July 3 ― State Islamic religious departments should consider using part of their zakat funds to provide children from low-income homes with books instead of just monetary aid, Education Minister Maszlee Malik said today.
He added that those in impoverished households were often deprived of quality reading materials that could broaden their views and show them a way to improve their situation.
“Quality books acts as an enabler that could help children from poor families climb out of poverty.
“Apart from providing them with monetary aid and other essentials good, contributing books to these [children] can brighten their future considerably,” he said during a book launch at Dewan Bahasa dan Pustaka here.
The minister also encourage other non-governmental organisation to contribute “quality” reading materials to low-income earners and their children.
To Maszlee, “quality books” are those that help people improve their command of languages like English as well as on subjects like science and technology.
He said reading materials in low-income homes were usually found to comprise of magazines and comics with little scholastic value.
“Quality books especially those in English, science and technology are rare among these families,” Maszlee said.
